This invention pertains to a work station locking system, and more particularly to a desk locking mechanism which permits various lockable storage compartments to be moved about relative to a work surface.
Several types of desk locking mechanisms are currently available and generally follow the design of two particular types. One of these involves the use of rigid bars or rods connecting the locking device of a storage compartment with a locking actuator. A typical embodiment of such a system installed in a desk having pedestals secured thereto comprises a primary locking device disposed in the work surface of the desk and secondary lock devices disposed at each pedestal desired to have a locking capability. A spring clip device is interposed between the primary and secondary locking devices and rigid rods or bars are interconnected between the primary locking device and spring clip and the spring clip and the secondary locking device. The spring clip serves to transfer the linear motion of the rigid bar connected to the primary locking device to the rigid bar connected to the secondary locking device.
A disadvantage of the desk locking mechanism utilizing rigid bars or rods to lock stationary pedestals is the difficulty in installing such a system within a desk assembly. The spring clip must be precisely positioned so that the linear motion of the rigid bar connected to the primary locking device is properly transferred to the rigid bar connecting the secondary locking device to the storage compartment. An incorrect placement of the spring clip between the two locking may devices cause the locking feature to be difficult or impossible to operate depending upon the amount of misalignment of the spring clip relative to the locking devices. Furthermore, such a system does not easily permit adjustment of the locking mechanism once installed, and if installation is incorrect, the system must be removed and correctly reinstalled.
Another disadvantage of the rigid bar locking system follows from the above in that the desk pedestals must be securely attached to the desk work surface so that accurate installation of the rigid bars and spring clip may be made. Consequently, if a particular storage compartment, for example, a filing cabinet, is desired to be moveable and lockable it must have its own primary locking device separate from the primary locking device for the desk pedestals. This requirement further increases labor and material costs since each moveable storage compartment must have its own separate primary locking device.
A further disadvantage with the above type desk locking mechanism is the elimination or degradation of flexibility when utilizing modular desk assemblies and the like. A modular desk assembly incorporating the above type desk locking mechanism would generally require a primary locking device for each separately moveable storage compartment.
A second type of prior art desk locking system utilizes a system of pulleys and cables to lock various storage compartments. Although it does not use rigid bars to connect the primary and secondary locking devices, this particular type of desk locking system has some of the disadvantages of the rigid bar locking system. For example, the storage compartments desired to have the capability of being locked generally must be secured to the work surface containing the primary locking device or stationary relative to the work surface. Once a particular storage compartment is secured to a work surface, the cable utilized in the pulley-cable locking system is cut to a particular length that is determined by the distance between the storage compartment and the work surface containing the primary locking device. Pulleys are disposed along points of the cable where a change of direction in the cable is necessitated by the placement of the storage compartment relative to the work surface. Here again, installation of such a system at the factory is difficult and time consuming due to the requirement of a predetermined length of cable precisely tensioned between the primary and secondary locking devices. Once installed, little or no adjusting is available to correct any error committed during the installation of the system. Furthermore, the longer the length of cable required to be tensioned between the primary and secondary locking devices or the more pulleys required to be installed along points of the cable length due to required changes of direction of the cable, the more difficult it is to install the system at the factory level. Such increased difficulties in installing a particular system result in higher labor and material costs.
The user of a pulley-cable desk locking system also does not have the flexibility of being able to move various storage compartments relative to the primary locking device without having to install a separate primary locking device within each moveable storage compartment.